Plant Encyclopedia
Stipa spartea (porcupine grass, "Yamaarashigaya")
Japanese name: ヤマアラシガヤ
Scientific name: Stipa spartea
[Overview]
A perennial that grows to more than 1 m tall.
The roots reach down very deep, so the plant cannot be pulled out easily.
The stems form clumps and are rather hard.
The leaves are linear.
A panicle appears at the stem tip.
The spikelets consist of one floret.
The lemma is somewhat cylindrical and has a long, thick awn at the tip.
Details
Names
English: porcupine grass, western porcupine grass, short-awn porcupine grass, porcupine needlegras, big needlegrass
Japanese: ヤマアラシガヤ
Japanese: ヤマアラシガヤ
Life form
Perennial
Habit
Terrestrial
Flowering season
May, June
Fruiting season
May, June
Distribution or origin
North America (Great Plains)
Height
1000 mm
Leaf shape
Linear
Leaf arrangement
Basal
Inflorescence
Panicle
Leaf color
Green
Translated from our Japanese encyclopedia. If anything differs, the Japanese page is correct.